#velvette screencap

[voxtopics]

Vox, Velvette, and Angelic Steel: An Overanalysis of Five Seconds

Posting this because I haven't seen anybody mention it yet amid the flood of Radiostatic speculation - but I think it is interesting, so here we go!

In Episode 3 of Season 2 of Hazbin Hotel, we saw Vox predictably being an absolute dickbag to everyone in the hotel, especially Angel Dust. It gets so bad that even Charlie breaks down and tells him and Velvette that they have to leave - and when Vox pushes back, Vaggie whips out her angelic steel spear for emphasis:

"Now she's uninviting you."

Angelic steel has been shown to be the one thing (aside from Adam's holy laser beams) that can send demons to double-death forever. Its deadliness has ben emphasized mere moments prior with the train setup Charlie created in an effort to redeem Angel Dust, which led to this very moment. Yet here Vox has said angelic steel pointing straight at his chest, and he doesn't react.

Overconfidence? Carelessness? Or as a being that can turn into electricity, can he just not be killed in conventional ways? For what it's worth, Velvette doesn't seem nervous for him either.

What's interesting, though, is what happens when Vaggie trains that angelic steel on Velvette when she speaks up seconds later:

Vox is moving instantly, before Velvette barely has time to react to having this weapon thrust in her face - something that obviously disturbs her in a way that it didn't disturb Vox. Meanwhile, Vox intercepts the spear with one hand and reaches around Velvette with the other, then pushes the spear out of the way:

For a moment, she gives him an interesting look, one that might be confusion, upset that Vox is taking charge and touching her, or something else entirely. But she soon shifts her focus, as after this change in target on Vaggie's part, Vox folds immediately:

"Fine! We have a reservation at Dante's Inferno anyway."

And then he keeps both hands on the spear and on Velvette, respectively, until she is out of range:

Maybe Vox has no heart for angelic steel to break, but this is not the action of someone who is completely careless. Even though I fully believe Vox will neglect or otherwise abandon the other Vees later in the season, he has some reason to care for Velvette enough here to act very differently to her apparent peril than his own. And for some reason, Charlie seems surprised. I have no idea whether she's clocking this too - it seems a bit deep for her character in this moment - but if she does, perhaps it informs her response to the final question Vox asks immediately after this exchange:

"I believe anyone can be redeemed."

Now, that was my favorite question in this entire episode drop....but more on that later.

[voxtopics]

But Vox - How Will You Get to Heaven?

Ever since "Once We Get Up There" dropped in Episode 1, I have seen plenty of people dunking on Vox for even thinking he could manage to get into Heaven, let alone depose all of its leaders. Sinners, after all, are all trapped in the Pride Ring. How are they supposed to ascend?

Flying assuredly wouldn't work - the angels would see and intercept intruders, and that would have been tried already. Some people have speculated that Vox will hijack Lucifer to create a portal to Heaven - but I think this is even less likely. We do know they smash the shield in the trailer, so this at least won't be an issue:

Bye-bye, shield.

So how indeed does Vox intend to get "up there"?

Many folks have already talked at length about how the story this season parallels the story of the Tower of Babel, with ordinary mortals wanting to rise to Heaven to challenge God. The imagery of the medieval interpretations of the Tower of Babel matches very closely with that of Vee Tower, as shown below:

The Tower of Babel, Van Valckenborch, 1594

What I haven't seen mentioned during any of these discussions is the fact that "Babel" literally means "Gate of God" - "Bab-El," where "El" means God (as in Elohim) and "bab" means "gate" or "gateway." So this building is representing the story not just metaphorically, but literally. And what can be found at the very top of Vee Tower, right above where Vox is going to be hosting the rally we've seen in the trailer (and in the image above)?

(Not Lucifer - it's not Lucifer. He's just there for now.)

Only a giant fucking antenna.

And who has been shown several times to be able to travel through electricity and electronic appliances to reach apparently whatever place in Pentagram City he wishes?

With whatever boost in power his supporters provide, not only is Vox the most likely person to be able to get into Heaven this way, he is possibly the ONLY person in Hell who could get into Heaven this way. Through the literal "gate" on top of his literal Tower of Babel.

Perhaps it won't go down this way - but it would at least make sense if it did. Granted, I have no idea what he'd do when he got there, but frankly, after last week, I'm rooting for him. Boy deserves a treat.